Why Am I So Forgetful? How to Improve Your Memory

You loved this series on Netflix — or was it Hulu? – what’s his name from the movie with the actress, you know, with the cool hair?

If you’ve had senior moments like this, you’re not alone.

“Almost everyone struggles with some form of memory loss before they reach middle age,” says Gary Small, MD, chair of psychiatry at Hackensack University Medical Center and author of The Memory Bible: An Innovative Strategy for Keeping Your Brain Young.

In a nationwide Gallup poll of 18,552 US adults ages 18 and older, researchers found that about 14% of the youngest group (ages 18 to 39) complained about their memory.

And the problem seems to be getting worse, thanks to increased screen time and poor lifestyle habits.

But you can defend yourself against forgetfulness.

In a recent episode of Write about the podcast nowput dr Small suggests some memory building techniques that will make your brain happy.

Why are we so forgetful?

To understand why we forget things, it helps to understand how we remember them in the first place.

“Memory has two main components: learning and retrieval,” explains Dr. Small. “You have to get that information into your brain and you have to be able to retrieve it.”

But anyone who’s ever played around with a smartphone, computer, or social media knows how distracting they can be. And that’s a problem.

“If you don’t focus your attention, you’ll never get that information into your brain,” says Dr. Small. “We are constantly being bombarded with more and more incoming data. This often leads to information overload, which likely reduces the percentage of stimuli that make it into our short- and long-term memories.”

Poor health equals poor memory

Unhealthy lifestyle habits are another major factor in memory loss.

Just as eating too many donuts and not getting enough sleep can lead to problems like diabetes, obesity and heart disease, according to Dr. Small also affect the health of our brain. “They prematurely age your brain.”

Our mental health also suffers. Many of us are feeling overwhelmed by the pandemic, workplace burnout, gas prices and all of life in the 21st century.

“When we experience depression and persistent anxiety or stress, we become distracted and our memory diminishes,” explains Dr. Small.

How to improve your memory

While many of us struggle with forgetfulness, there are effective ways to get our memory back in shape.

Watch, snap, connect

dr Small suggests a memory skill he and his former colleagues at UCLA developed called “Look, Snap, and Connect.”

The premise is if you can make something meaningful, it will be unforgettable. How does it work?

Looks: Slow down first, notice and focus on what you want to remember. Include all the details and meanings e.g. B. a new face, a conversation or directions to a new place.

Snap: Take a mental snapshot of what you want to remember. The brain has a natural ability to remember things visually, so use that. Say, for example, you’re meeting someone for the first time and you want to remember them. A mental snapshot can be their hairstyle or their smile.

Connect: Link these mental snapshots to remember in a chain, starting with the first image connected to the second, and so on. When you meet someone named Harry and notice that they have a lot of hair. You connect Harry to Hairy.

move

Studies show that exercise increases memory function. Research from the University of Illinois found that when you exercise, your body produces brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which Dr. Small referred to as “fertilizer for your brain cells.” BDNF causes “your brain to sprout branches so it can communicate more effectively,” he explains.

You don’t have to adopt a rigorous regime either. According to Dr. Small the risk of Alzheimer’s.

sleep more

Insomnia is the enemy of memory. When we don’t get enough sleep, we shut down our ability to focus and remember things. dr Small recommends seven to eight hours of sleep a night. He also advises against too much caffeine, which makes us irritable and distracted.

Eat more foods with antioxidants and curcumin

according to dr Small, obesity can trigger cognitive impairment late in life. He recommends avoiding processed foods like refined sugar, which are pro-inflammatory and bad for the brain.

Oxidation also causes wear and tear on your brain cells, so try to eat foods high in antioxidants like fish, nuts, olive oil, and avocados.

dr Small is also high in curcumin, a yellow pigment found in cumin, curries, and mustard.

In a study conducted at UCLA, people who took curcumin improved their memory test scores by 28 percent over 18 months.

Do brain aerobics

Just as we train our muscles, we must also train our brains. Think of it as 24-hour fitness for our hippocampus.

according to dr Small “information in our brains is routed through billions of dendrites, or extensions, of brain cells that resemble the branches of a tree. Without use, our dendrites can shrink or atrophy; but when we engage them in new and creative ways, their connections stay active as they share new information.“

Mentally stimulating activities can include playing word and crossword puzzles, listening to music, writing in a journal, doing brain teasers, or observing Danger!

In his book, Dr. Small suggests some brain builders, including this exercise:

Take a piece of paper and a pencil and try to write your first name with your non-dominant hand (ie left hand if you’re right-handed). Now take a second pencil and try to write your first name with both hands at the same time. Try your last name now

Listen to the whole thing to sharpen your memory Write about the podcast now interview with dr Gary Small: